’75 NORTON 850 MkIII COMMANDO FOR SALE! This bike has less than 7,000 miles on it since being completely rebuilt. Rebuild was performed by Chris Scott of Supertwins in North Hollywood, CA. The rebuild was completed in ’91, for the past 21 years this bike has spent most of it’s time on display in my home. As you can see from the pics, THIS NORTON IS BEAUTIFUL! This bike also handles great and runs VERY STRONG! I have all receipts and a clear title in hand.
Some of this bikes features include;
-New Bridgestone Battlax comp tires
-New battery
-Borrani alloy rims
-Norman Hyde rear sets
-Marzocchi shocks
-Grimeca master cylinder
-Boyer ignition
-Norvil fairing, fender, and seat pan
-Custom seat upholstery
-Etc, etc….
The build also included new carbs, progressive fork springs, rebuilt gauges, and lots and lots of PAINT, POWDER COATING, AND POLISHING!
I would rather not crate and ship this bike, but will discuss transportation options.
Today Walt emailed me this great looking custom cafe racer the he has for sale:
Here’s the description he sent me:
VINTAGE 1982 HONDA CB900F CAFÉ RACER
*Total Custom Restoration with pristine attention to every single nut and bolt
*Truly one of a kind motorcycle
*13,905 Original Miles
*Excellent Condition, Runs like new
*New Paint, professionally applied with layers of clear coat over Vintage Honda Wing Decals
*Black Aerospace Ceramic Coated Headers and 4 into 2 Exhausts
*Silver Aerospace Ceramic Coated valve covers, exhaust flanges and engine bits
*Polished Carbs
*Polished Engine Side Covers
*“Freddy Spencer Mod” open primary sprocket cover
*Rare, Euro Honda Open Lattice Rearset footpegs with proper brake pedal and shift pedal linkages
*Vintage 130 MPH Honda CB Speedo/Tach and jewel-like Gauge Lights
(Original gauges only read to 80 MPH due gov’t regulations of the era…)
*Black powdercoated drag bars with Superbike grips
*Billet bar end mirror
*Custom Café Tail with highest quality custom upholstered seat and bum stop
*Lucas style tail/stop lamp
*Many new OEM Honda Parts, Oils and Chemicals (have receipts) including:
*Galfer black stainless steel front Brake Lines
*New Brake Pads, Brake Fluid flush and fill, new caliper piston seals and boots
*Brake Master Cylinders rebuilt front and rear with new OEM Honda parts
*New Front Wheel Bearings and Dust Seals
*New Rear Wheel Bearings and Dust Seals
*New highest quality RK Chain and Sprockets with 20,000 mile written warranty
*New Sprocket Oil O ring
*New Tires front and rear
*New Valve Stems with custom caps
*New Fork gaitors and Honda fork oil
*New Ignition Coils, wires and Spark Plug Caps
*New Spark Plugs
*New Air Filter
*Carburetors completely disassembled, meticulously cleaned as per the “Carburetor Bible” and all o rings and gaskets replaced with Viton – ethanol fuel resistant materials
*Carbs synchronized
*New, hard to find, Honda fuel petcock with filter screen
*New Honda in line Fuel Filter
*Valves adjusted with new shims where required
*New Battery with warranty
*New gaskets all around including exhaust headers, mufflers, valve cover, oil pan, oil drain plug, rotor cover and tachometer seal. No leaks!
*Fresh oil and filter change
*Current license plate and safety inspection
*Clear blue Texas title in my name, in hand
*Two OEM Honda Keys (no longer available from Honda)
*Includes Original Vintage Honda Tool Kit and pouch
The key modification is the marriage of Yamaha FZR600 front and rear. This sucker is far lighter than the FZR was and should make the handling phenomenal — not to mention the brakes and the sharp looking rims with proper rubber.
1976 Honda CB550 Cafe Racer with a 1992 Yamaha FZR600 front & rear end. Mono shock conversion w/disc brake rear, dual front rotors, and FZR wheels & tires. Carbs rebuilt & re-jetted w/velocity stacks, electronics rewired with kick or push button start, FZR clip-on bars, mini gauges, new plugs, fresh oil, new fork seals, FZR rear-sets, new battery, frame reinforced and tins finished in silver & black. She runs & rids like a dream. The power band around 4500 RPMs is intoxicating and she begs to carve up the curves.
They even include a video:
The bid is at $1800ish as of this writing and no reserve. I hope it goes for a lot more than that as they have done a great job on this one. I’ll be adding them to my favorites to see what comes next!
I just got back from Indy MotoGP and one of the bikes that kept catching my eye was the XR1200. I never would’ve thought of myself as a Harley guy but that model really kept me looking back.
Surfing eBay this morning I found what might be an even better option, a Sportster with a Cafe look applied.
1993 Harley Davidson Cafe Racer. Completed 2 months ago. With labor and new parts over $20k invested. All parts were sent to powder coater and the paint is custom. Countless new parts (for list of parts please email me). Very quick and agile Harley. This is a one of its kind. Get thumbs up and heads on swivel everywhere you go. Stand out of the pack on this Harley. Alex 7863956728
Parts Detail:
Cafe racer tail section $500
Leather custom seat $500
Progressive shocks $550
Storks relocation foot pegs kit $750
Timing cover $150
Air cleaner $350
Custom Paint $2500
Vines and Hines pipes $1000
Controls $1000
Grips $100
Gas cap $70
Steel braided lines $450
Powder coating $2000
License plate relocation kit $600
Front forks machined (removal of front fender) $100
Rear view mirror $250
Dunlop Tires $600
Misc (bolts, oil, fluids, and etc) $200
$11670 total parts
$4000 labor
$4500 Harley Davidson 1200 sportster
$20,170.00 total
With a buy-it-now of $15k and an opening of $9k with no bids, I’m not sure how quickly this one will move. Unfortunately aftermarket parts rarely add that much value even if well applied. Still I like the look alot and hope it finds a new, loving home.
The Norton Commando is perhaps the ultimate cafe racer. This legendary model was introduced in 1968, but has its roots in the 1940s when the first parallel twins were developed for the 500cc Norton Model 7 twin. From there, it was punched out to a 650cc for the Dominator model, and then later to 750cc for the Atlas. Finally, it became the 750cc basis for the Commando. It would ultimately become an 850cc until in the final days of the Commando line.
When the Commando first appeared, it was a revolution of design. Vibration was insulated from the rider with a series of rubber mountings. The engine, gearbox and swingarm all received this patented Isolastic treatment. This technology kept the vibrations from the rider, giving a smooth comfortable ride. Unfortunately, all that rubber mounting did not do well for handling if not adjusted properly. The Isolastic system required free play to dampen vibration, but also allowed movement between the engine/gearbox and the swingarm.
This bike is a 1972 model. The seller states that it is based on an Interstate, which was a level of trim available in the Commando lineup. In 1972 alone there was a Fastback, Roadster and 750 Interstate offered for sale. From there, this bike has received a tremendous amount of detail work, upgrades, and modifications. The hand-formed aluminum tank, Norman White-prepped Combat spec motor along with many modern performance details really make this bike stand out.
Norton Commandos are available via auction and private parties on a regular basis. They are not terrifically rare, and can be purchased for well under $10k all day long. This bike, however, is a one of a kind work of art – the kind that melds rolling artwork, performance and nostalgia all in one. This bike, for the lucky new owner, is clearly the ultimate cafe racer.
No excuses this time, this thing is awesome! How cool would it be to make this street legal again and run it as is?! Many thanks to Mike at RareSportBikesForSale.com for the forward.
Sounds like there are many one off and custom built pieces to make this bike the sweet ride it is. The current owner sounds like medical issues prevent him from keeping it, so maybe you can help take it off his hands.
Up for Auction is a 1971 Honda 175 (200) motorcycle configured for AHRMA Racing.This Honda has all the required items to enter a event and race. I purchased this Honda because I was trying to capture the RC racing days. I have had it for 3 years and it was Gased and Rode down the street for a check to make sure all items were working, After that I drained the gas and took out the battery and it was moved into my house into the family room as a Motorcycle Era item. The Honda has many state of art items which the picture will show you. The engine is fresh with a 200cc Big bore kit, the head has been ported and the valves were updated and the cam is a mild Megacycle Cam, it has SL350 Carbs, Accel Ignition system, with a total loss, Recharge the battery after each run, Aluminum Rims, both brake hubs are vented for cooling, Safety wire is used on all items which may come loose and and the foot pegs and gear shift is set back. The gas tank has been coated and all the cables are in good working condition. There is no key required only an on /off switch. The kick starter has been removed and a oil safety tank has been installed in its place. It is a push and bump start as most race bikes have, this bike started after a short roll down my drive way. The seat is custom made as the gas tank is Quality and the front windshield. Over all the Honda is a real Quality machine and can be further configured to any state you wish. Iam in a medical situation which Iam not able to ride so with great regret Iam starting to move this motorcycle on to some one who is interested
and can further enjoy it.
I know that I post way too many Japanese cafes on the site but there are so many Japanese bikes in this country at a low entry price that we tend to see more fresh examples. I was deliberately trying to find another country of origin for my next post when I spotted this unique take. Merging the flat-track and cafe styles really sets this one apart I think.
This bike was professionally built by Steel Bent Customs in Tampa, Florida and they did a great job. I’m glad to see they avoided the played out flat blat look, though I personally wouldn’t have painted all of the engine and carbs. Esthetically it works great with the subtle yellow accents, right down to the yellow lettering on the tires.
As you can tell, I dig this bike. It’s well photographed, includes a video of start up and rev, and it’s no reserve! As of this writing it’s at only $1625.
1975 Honda CB400F Cafe Flat-Track Racer. Built by Steel Bent Customs in Tampa, Fl. Purchased in poor condition (see picture), then the work started. New tires, tubes & rim bands, plugs, carbs rebuilt, re-wired, coils rebuilt, flat-track bars, controls, rear-sets, gauges, exhaust, brake pads & rear shoes, frame reinforced, petcock, etc.
